President Barack Obama's job approval rating is up, from a negative 41 - 55 percent October 6,
to a split today with 47 percent approving and 49 percent disapproving in a Quinnipiac
University poll released today. The president has leads of 5 to 16 percentage points over likely
Republican challengers.

Voters also are divided 47 - 49 percent on whether Obama deserves reelection, compared
to last month, when voters said 54 - 42 percent he did not deserve reelection.

Former Godfather's Pizza CEO Herman Cain leads the Republican presidential primary
field with 30 percent, followed by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with 23 percent,
former House Speaker Newt Gingrich with 10 percent and Texas Gov. Rick Perry with 8 percent,
the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. No other candidate tops 7
percent.

Cain leads a head-to-head GOP race with Romney 47 - 39 percent, coming close to the
critical 50 percent mark, even though more Republicans think Romney has the knowledge and
experience to be president.

"President Barack Obama seems to be improving in voters' eyes almost across-the-board,"
said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "He scores
big gains among the groups with whom he has had the most problems - whites and men.
Women also shift from a five-point negative to a four-point positive.

"Whether this is a blip, perhaps because of the death of Moammar Gadhafi and the slight
improvement in some of the economic numbers, or the beginning of a sustained upward move in
his popularity isn't clear and won't be for some time. Nevertheless, the movement allows the
White House a sigh of relief, for the president's approval had been stuck in the low 40s for some
time and even a temporary upward move is good news for the folks at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave."

Much the same is true when voters are asked about whether the president deserves a
second term. Results among men shift from a 58 - 37 percent 'no' to 52 - 43 percent 'no' and
among whites he goes from 62 - 34 percent 'no' to 57 - 39 percent 'no.'

Obama also is looking better in matchups against potential Republican nominees:

50 - 40 percent over Cain, who was not included in a matchup last month;

52 - 37 percent over Gingrich, who was not matched last month.

Cain is likeable, American voters say 61 - 19 percent, including 82 - 5 percent among
Republicans, compared to Romney, who is seen as likeable 61 - 22 percent among all voters and
76 - 13 percent among Republicans.

Voters say 49 - 29 percent, however, that Cain does not have "the knowledge and
experience necessary to be a good president." Republicans say 54 - 26 percent he has the
knowledge and experience. Romney has the right stuff, voters say 51 - 32 percent, with 75 - 13
percent among Republicans.

By 41 - 14 percent all voters say Cain's never having held public office made them less
likely to vote for him, while 43 percent say it makes no difference. Republicans agree 34 - 20
percent, as 44 percent say it makes no difference.

Picking a winner of the GOP debates so far, 25 percent of Republicans pick Gingrich and
24 percent pick Romney. Picking a loser is no contest as 37 percent say Perry did worst.

"Cain's lead in the horse race is built on voters' positive views of him personally, but
there are warning signs that his lack of political experience could make it difficult for him to
eventually close the sale," said Brown.

From October 25 - 31, Quinnipiac University surveyed 2,294 registered voters with a
margin of error of +/- 2.1 percentage points. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones.
The Republican primary includes 869 voters with a margin of error of +/- 3.3 percent

The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public
opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio, Virginia
and the nation as a public service and for research.
For more data or RSS feed- http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, call (203) 582-5201, or
follow us on Twitter.

1. If the 2012 election for the U.S. House of Representatives were being held today, would you vote for the Republican candidate or for the Democratic candidate in your district?

2. (If Republican or Republican Leaner) If the 2012 Republican primary for President were being held today, and the candidates were Rick Perry, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, Michele Bachmann, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Jon Huntsman, and Herman Cain, for whom would you vote?

TREND: (If Republican or Republican Leaner) If the 2012 Republican primary for President were being held today, and the candidates were Rick Perry, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, Michele Bachmann, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Jon Huntsman, and Herman Cain, for whom would you vote? (na=not asked)

8. (If Republican or Republican leaner) How important have the Republican Presidential debates been in helping you decide how to vote in the Republican primary - Very important, somewhat important, not too important, or not important at all?

REPUBLICANS/REPUBLICAN LEANERS
Tot Men Wom
Very important 22% 19% 26%
Smwht important 42 41 43
Not too important 16 20 13
Not important at all 17 19 15
DK/NA 2 2 2

9. (If Republican or Republican Leaner) Have you watched any of this year's Republican Presidential debates?

16. Compared to past presidential elections, how would you describe your level of enthusiasm about voting in the 2012 presidential election next year - are you more enthusiastic than usual, less enthusiastic, or about the same as usual?

TREND: Compared to past presidential elections, how would you describe your level of enthusiasm about voting in the 2012 presidential election next year - are you more enthusiastic than usual, less enthusiastic, or about the same as usual?

41. (If Republican or Republican leaner) Regardless of how you intend to vote for President, which Republican candidate do you think would do the best job handling the issue of - illegal immigration: Rick Perry, Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, Michele Bachmann, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul, Jon Huntsman, or Herman Cain?

52. As you may know, Herman Cain has never served in public office. Does the fact that Herman Cain has never served in public office make you more likely to vote for him for President, less likely to vote for him for President, or doesn't it make a difference?

53. As you may know, Mitt Romney is a Mormon. Does the fact that Mitt Romney is a Mormon make you more likely to vote for him for President, less likely to vote for him for President, or doesn't it make a difference?

60. Herman Cain is proposing to change the current tax system. His 9-9-9 plan would eliminate all current federal taxes and replace them with a 9 percent personal income tax, a 9 percent corporate income tax and a 9 percent federal sales tax. How much have you heard or read about Cain's 9-9-9 tax plan? A lot, some, not much, or nothing at all?